Malaysiaminilover

Author: Angelina Soul

Drive to Thailand: In A MINI Cooper

It has always been my dream to drive a car to Thailand. A few days ago, I have decided to start my journey with a ‘05 Mini Cooper R50 from Penang, Malaysia to Phuket, Thailand. In Google map, the total journey is about 655 km and it requires 8 hours and 17 minutes for the entire journey. I care nothing about the 8 hours drive because I know it is going to be different when you are on your steering wheel.

Years ago, I was planning for this trip but during that time I was thinking to drive my 1972 MK3 Mini Austin. However, I gave up this mind and decided to go with my MINI Cooper R50 as it is newer and more reliable. The current mileage is 72,360 km (44,962 miles). Before the journey begins, I replaced four new tires for my car as the journey may continue to Surat Thani -> Hua Hin -> Bangkok -> Nakhon Ratchasima -> Khon Kaen -> Nong Khai -> Vientiane (Laos). I have selected Good Year GT3 175/65 R15 tires for both front wheels and Toyo NanoEnergy3 195/55 R15 tires for both rear wheels. The purpose of this setting is to test and review both Good Year and Toyo tires. Both of these tires are highly rated in many car related blogs and forums.

Brand New Toyo NanoEnergy3 195/55 R15 Tires

As for the engine oil, MINI always recommended Castrol Edge but I have selected BMW Super Power Oil SAE 5W-40 Fully Synthetic oil. This type of engine oil is made in Germany and it has a very good feedback from an experiment. It is more economical compared to the Mobil 1 and Castrol Edge. In fact, I do believe it will be good for any type car engines. We will see how the engine oil changes after 10,000km run.

So, what else to prepare before driving to Thailand? A GPS device (see what is the best GPS system for cars), a reliable car mounting kit, 12v car charger, a spare tire, and a steering lock. It is also recommended to bring some spares along such as hose, plug cable, coil, fuel pump, spark plugs, belts, and a length of wire, radiator cap and fuses.

The journey begins… It took less than 2 hours from Penang to Bukit Kayu Hitam as the distance is only approximately 150km. For those who never drive to Thailand, you will need to know that there are a few things to get ready before entering Sadao, Thailand. First, you will fill up your petrol station because the petrol price in Thailand is much more expensive. There are Petronas, Caltex and BHP at Changlun town. Second, you will need to find an insurance agent in Changlun town. There are a few but it is recommended to go for the reputable one. The Thai Insurance of coverage for MINI Cooper is only RM16 for 9 days and RM25 for 30 days. This is because the engine capacity for a MINI Cooper is only 1598cc. The Car Insurance of Coverage Thai is compulsory. You will be fined 10,000 Thai baht if there is any police road block and you can’t show them the insurance policy. This type of insurance covers body injuries ONLY and does not cover third party vehicle should you meet with an accident in Thailand. For drivers who want to purchase third-party insurance to cover someone else’s car during your trip, you will need to buy it at Hatyai town. Once the car insurance is settled and the fuel tank is full, the journey continues.

At Malaysia border, it is very easy as you can drive through the immigration and hand over your passport to the officers. It is about 1 km from Malaysia border to Thailand border. At Thailand border, you will need to park your car at the car park (on your left) and walk to stamp your passport. Proceed to the “Custom Form” area and hand over your car registration card. The officer will give you a SIMPLIFIED CUSTOMS DECLARATION FORM (For motor car and motor cycle temporarily imported or exported). This form stated your registration number, engine number, chassis no and some of your details. Read carefully and I notice that Malaysian drivers will be fine 1,000 Thai baht per day and up to a maximum of 10,000 THB if you don’t leave Thailand within the given date. Under the Guarantee Agreement, I noticed there is a sentence saying “I hereby guarantee myself to pay a sum of 7,500,000.00 baht upon a promise that if I commit a breach of this agreement”. A friend of mine who often drive to Thailand told me that is the amount of money you have to pay in case you lost your vehicle in Thailand. Thai government imposed this law is to avoid someone else from selling the car after they drive to Thailand. OMG! 7,500,000.00 baht is approximately $230,000 USD and that is the price for a brand new Lamborghini Huracan in the United States. My advice? Bring an extra steering to brake lock if you are driving to Thailand.

Once my car entered Thai border, the first town I drive through is Dannok. Dannok is a popular town for many Malaysians. My journey continues until I see a sign board YALA 179 km. I drive for another 60km and pay a visit to the famous Hatyai town. In Malaysia, it might take only 30 minutes for 60km distance but it takes me an hour to drive from Dannok to Hatyai due to the traffic and the road condition.

Day 1: Drive to Thailand: In A MINI Cooper

Day 2: Drive to Thailand: Hatyai to Trang to Krabi

Day 3: Drive to Thailand: Krabi to Phang Nga

Day 3: Drive to Thailand: Phang Nga to Phuket

March 30, 2015
Honda Civic Engine Vibrates in Parking Reverse Transmission

This page is contribute to all Honda Civic FD owners who have engine vibration, roughness, rattle, rumbling sound or other similar situation when the transmission is set to Parking (P) or Reverse (R). Model years affected are 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015. Read the symptoms properly and see if it is similar to what you have experienced. If so, continue to read on to find out the right solutions and share your thoughts here.

Symptom 1: One great early morning, you get into your Honda Civic as usual and start the car. The engine vibrates seriously and it sounds like it is going to break into pieces. The vibration happens when you put the transmission in Parking or Reverse. Instead, the vibration goes off when you put the gear in Drive (D), D3, 2, or 1. However, the car does not produce the same vibrations in Reverse or Parking after you have been driving it for a while. In the evening, the car engine doesn’t give you any vibration, rattling sound or rumbling sound.

Symptom 2: The car engine vibrates when the engine was cold. It sounds like the engine is touching the car body. The engine vibration is gone when the engine is hot or when you speed up. Take a look at the mileage it is exactly 117,000 km (72,700 miles) and the car is 9 years old. This symptom is reported to us by Ashley who invited us to check out her Honda Civic while the mileage has just hit 100,000 km (62,137 miles).

Honda Civic Engine Vibration Solution

Well, the engine vibration may sound very scary to the owner of the car not knowing what happen. Do not panic because this is a common problem for most 8^th generation Honda Civic owners. It happens when the engine idling or the transmission is in reverse. Here’s a little homework that you can do to your Honda Civic.

Step 1: First, open your car hood and locate the right side motor mount as shown in the image here.

Step 2: Once you have located the right side motor mount. Squat down a little bit and check on the spacing between the bump stops. The spacing between the bump stops should be approximately 1 cm for a good motor mount. Check and see if the bump stops hit on each other. If that is the case, it is time to replace the motor mount with a new one because the old motor mount transfers the engine vibration to the body.

Step 3: The motor mount (some called it engine mount) part no is 50820-SNL-T01. For beginners, it will take you about an hour to replace the part. Instead, an advance mechanic will only need 30 minutes to replace the right motor mount.

Step 4: This is a photo to compare the old worn motor mount and the new one. The motor is hydraulic and it obviously has a lifetime. Take a look at the photo below, the old one is obviously worn out and look old. The new one is showing an approximate 1 cm between the bump stops.

Step 5: Once a new motor mount or engine mount is replaced, it should look like this. A new motor mount is cost THB3,419 from Honda Thailand and it should cost in between $100 and $150 in United States.

Some other useful information for Honda Civic FD owner: Honda Civic Fuse Diagram and Basic car maintenance schedule (car maintenance schedule).

At most of the time, this issue does not relate to bad spark plugs. Does the information shared here solve your problems? Please contact us and let us know if your problem could not be solved after the motor mount is replaced with a new one.

February 9, 2015
Hate Your Mini Cooper Back Seat? Here’s an Awesome Idea…

Hate your Mini Cooper back seat? Here’s an awesome idea for you to deal with it. Dani Goulet from United States has converted his Mini Cooper R56 back seat to a very useful cargo space. With a piece of custom made trunk mat, Dani successfully made his car boot looks like factory made. In order to match the trunk mat with the car, orange is chosen.

Notice there is a huge MINI Countryman badge fitted on the trunk mat. Isn’t it is beautiful? It is unnecessary to buy a new Countryman badge since you are doing this for your trunk. There are many used MINI Countryman badge on sale at a cheap price on eBay.

Why not convert your rear seat to something like this if you don’t use your back seat at most of the time? It makes your car lighter in terms of weight and gives you more space for luggage and baggage. This kind of conversion is simply brilliant and very practical for MINI Cooper owners who often travel few thousand miles during holidays.

Photo credit: Dani Goulet

Do you customize your own car or your MINI Cooper in a different way than others? Please do not hesitate to send us an email to malaysiaminilover [AT] gmail [DOT] com if you would like to publish your car photos here.

February 3, 2015
Gymkhana Round 3

The Ultra racing Gymkhana Challenge Series Round 3 has just finished. It was the last Gymkhana event for 2014 and also the last race for 2014 after the Sepang International Circuit TimeToAttack. The venue was held at Speedway Plus Circuit USJ Subang Jaya Plus R&R. Race were separated into two main categories which are Precision Gymkhana and Open Gymkhana. Racers who joined Precision Gymkhana are not allowed to drift, skid, or make a turn with handbrake. On the other hand, drifting, handbraking, and skidding are allowed for Open Gymkhana. (more…)

December 28, 2014
$15,000 Custom Classic Mini Cooper

When it comes to custom cars, it is either extremely cool or tremendously ugly. Cool in terms of making people feel “WOW” when they see the car. Ugly in terms of making people feel “NAY” and don’t feel like to take a photo of the car. Today, we are going to show you a custom Mini Cooper that will make you feel WOW. The owner of this white body black roof Mini Cooper has spent more than $15,000 to customize this car. Together with the car price, the cost of this car has come to a total of nearly $20,000. What?? A $20,000 Mini Cooper? Yes, it is!

So, what makes this car so expensive? You can get a brand new 2015 Mini Cooper in the United States with this price tag. The car paint itself has cost more than $2000 (approximately RM6000). The owner ordered everything new from United Kingdom and that is one main reason that sum up this huge car price for a little Mini.

As you can see from the photos, the car is spiced up with a Zeemax look-alike custom body kit and a set of 13 inches Minilite sports wheel. Brand new stainless steel front grill, bullet side mirror, Aston fuel cap, Mini Cooper badge wings emblem, and many more to be mentioned. Look at the rear of the car, it comes with twin fuel tank. A classic Cooper style. Do you know how much the right hand fuel tank costs? It is about $350 dollars from MiniSpares UK.

As for the interior, everything is custom build. Custom dashboard, custom air-conditioning, and a lot of extra gauges have been installed to the car. The seats are wrapped with genuine white leather to make it look clean and comfort. Do you still remember the previous custom Mini that was shared in MalaysiaMiniLover.com? The light blue two-seater classic Mini Roadster, Mini Shorty, and the matte black Mini Cooper with scissor doors. Which one do you prefer?

Take a look at the engine bay, everything is so shining! The engine shines bright like a diamond! 1300cc paired with a 4-speed gear box feed with twin carburetor. Aluminum radiator, chrome master brake pump, and chrome wiper motor are a few significant parts under the hood.

What do you think about this white Mini Cooper? LIKE or Dislike? Share your opinion with the comment features here. In a nutshell, if you want to customize your own car, make sure you do it nicely with creativity otherwise a lot of money will be wasted.

December 25, 2014